The Student News Site of North Carolina A&T State University

The A&T Register

The Student News Site of North Carolina A&T State University

The A&T Register

The Student News Site of North Carolina A&T State University

The A&T Register

Manafort and Cohen Charged on Presidential Collusion by Brittany Van Pelt and Kayla Clarke

Manafort+and+Cohen+Charged+on+Presidential+Collusion+by+Brittany+Van+Pelt+and+Kayla+Clarke

Former campaign chairman to President Trump, Paul Manafort, was found guilty on eight counts of financial crimes by the Muller counsel. He was found guilty on five counts of tax fraud, two counts of bank fraud and one charge of hiding foreign bank accounts.

The jury ended in a deadlock with 10 other charges. Manafort faces 80 years in prison.

When asked about Manafort charges, President Trump said “He had nothing to do with Russian collusion” and criticized Mueller’s investigation for arriving at this point

With these charges, the prosecutors stated that Manafort collected $65 million in foreign bank accounts. Manafort was also spending $15 million on luxury purchases including high-end clothing, real estate, and other expensive items.

They also alleged that Manafort lied to banks to take out roughly $20 million in loans after his work in Ukraine dried up in 2015 which they then accused him of hiding foreign bank accounts.

“Mr. Manafort lied to keep more money when he had it, and he lied to get more money when he didn’t,” prosecutor Greg Andres told jurors during closing arguments. “This is a case about lies.”

This news came at right after President Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of campaign finance violations, tax and bank fraud in a New York federal court.

Cohen told the judge after pleading that President Trump ordered him during the last election to buy the silence of two women he had affairs.

Manafort has been in jail since June after his bail was revoked for charges of witness tampering. He still faces charges in Washington D.C. federal court for money laundering and failure to register foreign lobbying. The trial is set to start with jury selection on Sept. 17.

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